The Problem No One is Talking About

 

Car Accident Debris 

Many of us are very reliant on our cars and we see driving as no big deal, but the reality is everyday millions of people’s families are ruined in an instant due to car accidents. Compared to other western countries the United States is far larger and has a greater population. The United States also is more reliant on cars than some western European nations, so more accidents are going to occur. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s 2020 crash report 5.2 million car accidents occurred that year, which means that’s 14,386 accidents per day and around 10 accidents per minute.

This is a major problem in this country that no one ever seems to address, but a tragic story always ends up on the news. Many car accidents are hit-and-run cases that are only solved 10 percent of the time according to The Bussey Law Firm P.C.

Local and State police departments should implement new techniques and programs to reduce the amount of unsolved hit-and-run cases, specifically implementing more surveillance technology and utilizing forensic evidence.

Police departments should place CCTV and traffic cameras at dangerous intersections that have a history of being accident prone. Implementing this surveillance technology allows investigators to be able to review footage and better track down suspects and rely less on witness accounts.

For example, there was a case in West Covina, California where a hit-and-run accident occurred, and the traffic camera allowed investigators to track down the assailant and ultimately lead to a conviction.

The surveillance technology can work the other way as well. In a case in Los Angeles footage from a traffic camera helped investigators figure out which car was responsible for causing a pile up, which they had wrongly accused another car based on witness accounts.

Traffic cameras play a crucial role in car accident investigations by providing clear and persuasive evidence that can greatly impact the outcome of a case.

Police departments should also be utilizing forensic evidence to help solve more hit-and-run cases. Officials should analyze data from cell phones, GPS, or navigation systems to link suspects to the scene of the accident.

This powerful technology does come with its faults. Many people have raised concerns about privacy and how far officials can go. As a country privacy is very important to most people and especially with this advanced technology our privacy can be jeopardized. To combat this issue strict laws and regulations will have to be implemented to protect people’s privacy.

Another issue may arise money. Some critics argue that state and local police stations simply don’t have enough money to implement this technology and that the money is going to more important issues. Almost every household in America owns a car and drives on the road every day. Thousands of people die every day in car accidents, thousands of families are ruined by car accidents every day and not having enough money is not an acceptable excuse. 

Every day one or all our loved ones enter a car and drive in traffic and every day some family gets the devastating news that a loved one has been in an accident. This news is bad enough, but when someone is involved in a hit-and-run case no justice is found for the victims and their families. With the implementation of new techniques like setting up more surveillance footage and utilizing more forensic evidence to solve these hit-and-run cases officials may be able to bring justice to these families.